Local rich guys Bill Haslam and Gov. Bill Lee dropped a video on Saturday encouraging Tennesseans to vote in favor of adding a right-to-work amendment to the state constitution, enshrining the anti-union policy into the law of the land. Haslam, a former governor and current billionaire, insists that the state's right-to-work law, which allows workers to opt out of unions and their dues even if they benefit from the organization's collective bargaining, has helped Tennessee grow into an attractive place for employers and employees alike. You can check the video below, with the Bougie Bills encouraging you to "vote yes on 1" in November.
Labor rights advocates have been blasting the amendment, calling the term "right-to-work" misleading and saying that it diminishes the bargaining power of workers. (There's an old adage that "right-to-work" really means "the right to work for less.") The Tennessee AFL-CIO Labor Council tells Tennessee Lookout that the policy is "an attack on working families." In addition to the AFL-CIO, a coalition of pro-labor advocates has formed the Tennessee Workers' Defense Network to encourage voters to strike down the amendment.
The Scene covered the history of right-to-work laws in Tennessee in a two-part cover story last year that also looked at the current state of unions in the Volunteer State. Check it out below if you're interested in learning more about local labor laws, or more about the unions and worker organizers fighting to improve conditions for working Tennesseans.
This article is part of a two-story cover package on labor in Tennessee. See also: "The State of Labor in Tennessee: Speaking with workers’ ri…
This article is part of a two-story cover package on labor in Tennessee. See also: "Right-to-Work Policy Makes Its Way to the State Constituti…
